intriguing article about some japanese blue note reissues!
Press on
By GARY DEMUTH Salina Journal
Kenichi Arai and Koki Hanawa flew from Tokyo to Salina to fill a pressing need.
The Japanese businessmen, one a record label executive and the other a manager and buyer for a chain of Japanese record stores, came to a converted warehouse in north Salina to watch record presses make nearly 1,000 vinyl copies of five classic jazz albums.
If this initial press run is successful, workers at Quality Record Pressings might be pressing thousands of copies of 95 additional classic jazz albums for eager Japanese record collectors.
Arai, a strategic and international marketing executive for EMI Music Japan, said he was impressed with the Salina plant.
"It's exactly what we were expecting," he said.
Read the rest at salina.com
=============
WHITESNAKE: 'Box O'Snakes: The Sunburst Years 1978-1982' Boxed Set
On November 7 EMI is scheduled to release the new WHITESNAKE boxed set 'Box O'Snakes: The Sunburst Years 1978-1982.' The boxed set will contain eight CDs (every studio and live album recorded for the EMI label), one DVD (include a Washington 1980 show, the promotional singles from 1978-1982 and BBC TV performances), a limited-edition seven-inch single as well as a 90-page book with new interview and previously unseen photos.
=============
METALLICA And LOU REED: 'Lulu' Deluxe Edition Detailed
Lou Reed and METALLICA's new effort 'Lulu' is set to be released on November 1st in North America via Warner Bros. Records and one day earlier (October 31) in the rest of the world through Universal Music. The CD was co-produced by Reed, METALLICA, Hal Willner and Greg Fidelman. Fidelman also mixed the record.
The deluxe version of 'Lulu' will come in a tube-shaped container measuring 13 centimeters x 1.24 meters, will also include the following:
* 2xCD digipack package
* A large 1.2 m x 1.6 m poster (with song lyrics)
* 3 photographs by Anton Corbijn (50 cm x 50.8 cm)
Tracklist:
1. Brandenburg Gate (4:19)
2. The View (5:17)
3. Pumping Blood (7:24)
4. Mistress Dread (6:52)
5. Iced Honey (4:36)
6. Cheat On Me (11:26)
7. Frustration (8:33)
8. Little Dog (8:01)
9. Dragon (11:08)
10. Junior Dad (19:28)
=============
Frank Zappa: ‘Conventional, Conservative Man’
Andrew Vaughan
A new book by one-time Frank Zappa assistant Pauline Butcher paints a fascinating picture of the American guitar pioneer.
According to the BBC, Butcher met Frank Zappa in London in 1967 and worked with him in California for five years. Butcher moved in with Zappa and his wife in their notorious Log Cabin in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon.
“Frank and his wife and their little baby Moon Unit lived in this house called the Log Cabin. It was well known in Hollywood. Every day we were visited by rock stars of the time: Joni Mitchell, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane. Eric Clapton was always at the house.”
Read the rest at our friends at Gibson
=============
Why Can't Floyd Get Along?
According to Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason he is saying that he is disappointed that his former bandmates are unwilling to reunite. The band – David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Mason – last played together in 2005 at Live 8. Wright has since died. When asked by Rolling Stone whether Pink Floyd still “exists,” Mason stated:
“I think it’s one of those things where I’m not quite ready to say it doesn’t exist anymore. And, you know, it might be I’m a sad person and just can’t let go of something, but it’s just that feeling that, you know, who knows? I suppose I live in hope that their might be another Live Aid or something like that. I don’t seriously expect anyone to suddenly announce that we should get back into studios and knock out an album.
“I’m quite keen on not saying it’s all over. It’s partly to do with me hating the idea of conceding any sort of retirement. I’ve always held the door open. I absolutely know that David [Gilmour] wouldn’t want to do anything at present but, you know, people change. In a year’s time, a few years’ time, whatever.”
as the nike commercial says, just do it....
=============
lovely cover art....
Suicidal Angels Reveal Artwork For New LP
Greeks thrash band Suicidal Angels have recently announced that they will enter Prophecy & Music Factory studios in Kempten, Germany to record their upcoming LP 'Bloodbath,' which is due for release on January 27, 2012 via NoiseArt Records. The cover art was created by Ed Repka.
=============
SCORPIONS: 'Comeblack' Cover Artwork Reveiled
German hard rock veterans SCORPIONS are scheduled to release 'Comeblack,' which is a collection of re-recorded versions of the band's classics songs, on November 4 via Sony. The effort will be made available as a CD and on double vinyl.
In a recent interview with ArabNews.com, SCORPIONS frontman Klaus Meine talked about the group's future plans: "Our newest project comes out in the next few months. It gives you a chance to experience the SCORPIONS in 3D. You can actually feel the smoke string out of the guitar like it is a live show. It is an incredible experience. The DVD features our concerts in 3D in Germany. We are just about to do the mix and it should be in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia hopefully soon. Indeed, the strong 3D technology makes us feel like pioneers after all these years. (Laughs) We have an album coming out later this year featuring classics. You know our love for them. The '60s was the era for our inspiration. Our movie/documentary also is soon to be released. We have cameras with us on tours, so this documentary is being made during or tours. It also gives you a picture of the SCORPIONS career and journey."
=============
Lydia Unveil New Album Artwork
Lydia have revealed the cover art for their new record, 'Paint It Golden.' The album, which was recorded this past summer with producer Matt Malpass, is set to be released on October 4.
In a press statement, frontman Leighton Antelman remarked, "I am overly excited to put out this new record. I have been holding onto a lot of these songs for years now and I didn't even know if I'd ever release them. I am truly blessed to be able to share my thoughts and ideas with so many people around the world."
Tracklist:
1. Hailey
2. Dragging Your Feet in the Mud
3. Eat Your Heart Out
4. Get It Right
5. Best Nights
6. I'll Bit You
7. Seasons
8. Ghosts
9. Skin + Bones
10. Birds
=============
JOHN 5 Releases Second Single From Forthcoming Solo Album
"Welcome To Violence", the brand new single from ROB ZOMBIE/ex-MARILYN MANSON guitarist John 5, is available to purchase today from all good online music retailers. The track is the second single to be released from John 5's sixth solo studio instrumental album, "God Told Me To". It features cover art by ROB ZOMBIE bassist Matt Montgomery (a.k.a. Piggy D.).
Read more at our friends at Blabbermouth
=============
CHRIS CORNELL: 'Songbook' Album Details Revealed
SOUNDGARDEN/ex-AUDIOSLAVE singer Chris Cornell will release an album of live "Songbook" tour performances on November 21 via Universal Music Enterprises. The set will feature Cornell's own songs as well as a few covers. All fans who purchase their "Songbook" tour tickets online will receive a digital copy of the album with each order.
"Songbook" track listing:
1. As Hope And Promise Fade
2. Scar On The Sky
3. Call Me A Dog
4. Ground Zero
5. Can't Change Me
6. I Am The Highway
7. Thank You (LED ZEPPELIN cover)
8. Cleaning My Gun
9. Wide Awake
10. Fell On Black Days
11. All Night Thing
12. Doesn't Remind Me
13. Like A Stone
14. Black Hole Sun
15. Imagine (JOHN LENNON cover)
16. The Keeper
Get more information at Blabbermouth
=============
love the new music from the band and love this review!
Blink-182 releases their much anticipated album
By Cassie Rossel
The boys of Blink-182 are finally giving worldwide fans what they've been begging for with the release of their sixth studio album, Neighborhoods, on Sept. 27.
A new record seemed nearly impossible since Blink-182 announced that they would be taking an "indefinite hiatus" in 2005.
After the split, each member of the band went on to do their own projects, which further led fans to believe that Blink-182 was really over.
Travis Barker and Mark Hoppus formed the band +44, while Tom DeLonge formed the band Angels and Airwaves. Barker also made a solo record along with several side projects.
The incident that brought the band together once again was Barker's near death experience three years ago. DJ Adam Goldstein and Barker were the only survivors of a flaming Learjet 60 crash site in South Carolina.
After the terrifying crash, the three longtime friends began to come into contact once again.
Read the rest at lariatnews.com
=============
someone always comes up with these lists, this one is more interesting than most, as it has lots of awful album cover art that i have not seen before (i guess i didn't miss much):
25 Worst Heavy Metal Album Covers Of All-Time
by Rob O'Connor
With the generous help of Bill Billoney, who runs the essential blog Bang Your Head or I'll Rip It Off at bangyourheadorillripitoff.blogspot.com and the Atrocious Heavy Metal Album Covers group at Facebook, I cherrypicked the worst of the worst.
See the list at new.music.yahoo.com
=============
How many versions of an album do we need?
author Bernard Perusse of Postmedia News and the www.montrealgazette.com rants about the number of reissues coming our way. but, as a music fan, he seems to appreciate the efforts!
Read more at montrealgazette.com
=============
and in music history for september 29th:
In 1907, country crooner and legend Gene Autrey was born (he died in 1998).
Tommy Boyce (Boyce & Hart) was born in 1939 (died in 1994).
In 1956, Bill Haley had five songs in the U.K. Top 30: “Rockin Through the Rye,” “Saints Rock n’ Roll,” “Rock Around the Clock,” “Razzle Dazzle” and “See You Later Alligator.”
Also in 1956, RCA Victor, by this day, had received 856,327 advance orders for "Love Me Tender" by Elvis Presley.
In 1958, the Big Bopper's "Chantilly Lace" entered the US Pop chart, where it will top out at #6.
Also in 1958, Tommy Edwards' "It's All In The Game" led the Billboard chart. The melody of the song had been written in 1912 by Charles Gates Dawes, who would become vice-president of the United States between 1925 and 1929. Updated lyrics were added in 1951.
In 1959, Cliff Richard became the first UK artist to have a rock 'n' roll hit in the US when "Living Doll" makes the Billboard chart, where it will peak at #30.
In 1961, Bob Dylan played harmonica on three tracks of his friend Caroline Hester's first album. Producer John Hammond is so impressed that he signs Dylan to a contract and arranges for a solo recording session in October.
In 1962, "My Fair Lady" closed after a 6½ year run on Broadway. The show, at the time, held the record for the longest-running musical.
In 1963, the Rolling Stones opened their first English tour in London at the New Victoria. Also on the bill were Bo Diddley and the Everly Brothers.
In 1966, Jimi Hendrix and Noel Redding meet for the first time while auditioning for Eric Burdon's New Animals in London.
"I Heard it Through the Grapevine" was released by Gladys Knight & the Pips in 1967.
Mickey Hart joined the Grateful Dead in 1967.
"45rpm SongFacts"
In 1973, Grand Funk Railroad went to #1 on the US singles chart with “We’re an American Band,” the group’s first of two chart toppers. The song was sung by drummer Don Brewer rather than Mark Farner, who usually took lead vocals.
Grand Funk drummer Don Brewer:
"We started out as a trio in 1969. Everybody calls it 'Heavy Metal,' but heavy metal didn't come around until the '80s, so we were just a hard rock trio. We were kind of riding along with the FM underground situation, so we were able to make 7 minute, 9 minute songs and we'd get the airplay because that was the in thing to do - we could get whole albums played. As we moved into 1972, FM underground radio was beginning to be very commercial, so they were looking for songs that were 3 minutes 30 seconds long. We needed to go that way. We left our former manager Terry Knight in 1972. We were going through lawsuits and all this crap and we came out with an album that was very different for Grand Funk Railroad called The Phoenix Album. We were lucky to have sort of a semi-hit off that record ('Rock 'N' Roll Soul'), but we knew that the next record had to be something big or the career was going to go down the toilet. We were touring, supporting The Phoenix Album, we were going from town to town, there were lawsuits flying all over the place, it was a very tumultuous time period. I remember lots of discussions in the back of cars going, 'What are we going to do next?' Our manager kept saying, 'Why don't you just write songs about what you do: you're out here on the road, you're going to this hotel, you go to different places, there's people, you come into town...' So the thought came into my mind, 'We're coming to your town, we'll help you party it down.' That's really what we were doing - we were coming into town and we were the party. That's where the line came from, and the next thought I had was, 'We're an American band.' It wasn't to wave the flag or anything, it was just simply what we were. It was a true description and it kind of rolled off my mind. I went home and worked on the concept for a while and picked up a guitar; I'm not really a great guitar player, I can play 2 finger chords and that kind of stuff. I worked out the chord structure and I brought it in to rehearsal one day and there you go - we just let it go from there. It had a mind of its own."
The lyrics are about little things that were going on on the road during the Phoenix tour. All of them are true. Don explains the line, "Up all night with Freddie King, I've got to tell you, poker's his thing":
"Freddie King was the opening act for us, the great Blues guitar player from Texas. It always struck me as funny that he would make his band play poker with him every night. We used to sit in on some of the poker games, and that's where that line came from. His band, he'd pay them, and then he'd go win all the money back so they were broke and they'd have to keep playing for him - it was a great deal. A lot of people don't understand the Freddie King part because they don't know who Freddie King is. Anybody who knows about Freddie King immediately picks it up. People who don't say, 'What are you saying, that Focus can't sing?'
The line "Sweet Sweet Connie was doing her act" is about Connie Hamzy, a famous groupie known as "Sweet Connie." Some of her rumored conquests include Brewer, John Bonham, Keith Moon, Huey Lewis, Peter Criss, and Bill Clinton when he was governor of Arkansas. This song made her famous, and in 2010 VH1 ran a special about her life. According to Hamzy, she didn't have "the whole band," as stated in the lyrics, but she came pretty close - Mark Farner was a holdout.
Grand Funk was one of the best-selling bands of the '70s, and this was their biggest hit. Critics were often very harsh, especially Rolling Stone magazine, but they had a huge fan base and got lots of radio play. Says Brewer, "The time was right, it was the summer heading for the 4th of July. We'd really come off of about a year of publicity in Rolling Stone and other music mags with publicity flying over our lawsuits with Terry Knight. There were a lot of things going on where as long as we came up with something that was very commercially viable, it was going to hit, and this came and really took it over the top. We enlisted Todd Rundgren to work on the album - we wanted that commercial appeal Todd could give us with FM radio - he really understood what the sound of the time was. When he came in, the magic was there. We recorded in Miami, one thing was leading to another and it was all snowballing and happening for us. The fact that the song was so good, and so commercially good just added to it."
In the first pressing, all the copies of the 45 RPM records were pressed on gold vinyl. Says Brewer: "That was Capitol's idea. A couple of bands had done that prior to us. It's called virgin vinyl and it's expensive, so record companies didn't want to do virgin vinyl. You could see through it. Black vinyl, they can put all kinds of impurities in there that nobody cares about. Virgin vinyl, where you can see though it, if there were impurities and stuff there would be specks all through it, so they didn't like doing that, but we went to them and said, 'Look, we want to make a special statement,' so they agreed to print 100,000 units of both the single and the album on virgin gold vinyl to go along with the gold record situation we had going - we had about 6 gold records prior to that, and it was like, 'Let's give everybody a gold record.' They were rare, and they still go for a pretty good buck with collectors."
In 1974, John Lennon appeared on WNEW-FM in New York as a guest DJ.
In 1976, enjoying his own birthday celebrations, singer Jerry Lee Lewis accidentally shot his bass player Norman Owens in the chest. Lewis had been blasting holes in an office door. Owens survived but sued his boss.
In 1977, James Brown's band walked out on him Hallandale, FL. They were complaining about being underpaid and overworked.
In 1984, Prince's single "Let's Go Crazy" hit No. 1. He then held the No. 1 single, album and film simultaneously. Only the Beatles had accomplished the feat previously.
In 1989, with a full-scale Eagles reunion still five years away, Glenn Frey joined Don Henley onstage for the first time since 1980 at a concert in LA. Throughout the decade, band members received several lucrative offers to reunite, but declined them all.
In 1989, while travelling on his motorbike from Los Angeles, Bruce Springsteen stopped in a small salon in Prescott, AZ, and played a few songs with the band. He overheard a woman talking about financial problems concerning her medical bills. A week later she received a check for $100,000 from Springsteen. that's why he is the BOSS
In 1990, Rick Nelson's sons Gunnar and Matthew have a number one hit on Billboard's Hot 100 with "Love and Affection", becoming the third generation of Nelsons to accomplish that feat. Their grandfather, Ozzie Nelson, led his orchestra to the top of the chart in 1932 with "And Then Some" and Rick topped all others in 1958 with "Poor Little Fool" and in 1961 with "Travelin' Man".
In 2001, Farm Aid 2001: A Concert for America was held in Noblesville, IN with Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews, Doobie Brothers and Martina McBride.
In 2004, Keith Moon’s five-piece drum kit, custom-made for The Who drummer in 1968, sold for $215,772 in London to an American collector, setting a world auction record for a set of drums.
birthdays today (among others) include: Les Claypool (Primus) (48), Mike Pinera (Blues Image, Iron Butterfly) (63), John Payne (Asia) (53), Mark Farner (Grand Funk Railroad) (63) and the immortal Jerry Lee Lewis (76)
Press on
By GARY DEMUTH Salina Journal
Kenichi Arai and Koki Hanawa flew from Tokyo to Salina to fill a pressing need.
The Japanese businessmen, one a record label executive and the other a manager and buyer for a chain of Japanese record stores, came to a converted warehouse in north Salina to watch record presses make nearly 1,000 vinyl copies of five classic jazz albums.
If this initial press run is successful, workers at Quality Record Pressings might be pressing thousands of copies of 95 additional classic jazz albums for eager Japanese record collectors.
Arai, a strategic and international marketing executive for EMI Music Japan, said he was impressed with the Salina plant.
"It's exactly what we were expecting," he said.
Read the rest at salina.com
=============
WHITESNAKE: 'Box O'Snakes: The Sunburst Years 1978-1982' Boxed Set
=============
METALLICA And LOU REED: 'Lulu' Deluxe Edition Detailed
The deluxe version of 'Lulu' will come in a tube-shaped container measuring 13 centimeters x 1.24 meters, will also include the following:
* 2xCD digipack package
* A large 1.2 m x 1.6 m poster (with song lyrics)
* 3 photographs by Anton Corbijn (50 cm x 50.8 cm)
Tracklist:
1. Brandenburg Gate (4:19)
2. The View (5:17)
3. Pumping Blood (7:24)
4. Mistress Dread (6:52)
5. Iced Honey (4:36)
6. Cheat On Me (11:26)
7. Frustration (8:33)
8. Little Dog (8:01)
9. Dragon (11:08)
10. Junior Dad (19:28)
=============
Frank Zappa: ‘Conventional, Conservative Man’
Andrew Vaughan
According to the BBC, Butcher met Frank Zappa in London in 1967 and worked with him in California for five years. Butcher moved in with Zappa and his wife in their notorious Log Cabin in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon.
“Frank and his wife and their little baby Moon Unit lived in this house called the Log Cabin. It was well known in Hollywood. Every day we were visited by rock stars of the time: Joni Mitchell, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane. Eric Clapton was always at the house.”
Read the rest at our friends at Gibson
=============
Why Can't Floyd Get Along?
According to Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason he is saying that he is disappointed that his former bandmates are unwilling to reunite. The band – David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Mason – last played together in 2005 at Live 8. Wright has since died. When asked by Rolling Stone whether Pink Floyd still “exists,” Mason stated:
“I think it’s one of those things where I’m not quite ready to say it doesn’t exist anymore. And, you know, it might be I’m a sad person and just can’t let go of something, but it’s just that feeling that, you know, who knows? I suppose I live in hope that their might be another Live Aid or something like that. I don’t seriously expect anyone to suddenly announce that we should get back into studios and knock out an album.
“I’m quite keen on not saying it’s all over. It’s partly to do with me hating the idea of conceding any sort of retirement. I’ve always held the door open. I absolutely know that David [Gilmour] wouldn’t want to do anything at present but, you know, people change. In a year’s time, a few years’ time, whatever.”
as the nike commercial says, just do it....
=============
lovely cover art....
Suicidal Angels Reveal Artwork For New LP
=============
SCORPIONS: 'Comeblack' Cover Artwork Reveiled
In a recent interview with ArabNews.com, SCORPIONS frontman Klaus Meine talked about the group's future plans: "Our newest project comes out in the next few months. It gives you a chance to experience the SCORPIONS in 3D. You can actually feel the smoke string out of the guitar like it is a live show. It is an incredible experience. The DVD features our concerts in 3D in Germany. We are just about to do the mix and it should be in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia hopefully soon. Indeed, the strong 3D technology makes us feel like pioneers after all these years. (Laughs) We have an album coming out later this year featuring classics. You know our love for them. The '60s was the era for our inspiration. Our movie/documentary also is soon to be released. We have cameras with us on tours, so this documentary is being made during or tours. It also gives you a picture of the SCORPIONS career and journey."
=============
Lydia Unveil New Album Artwork
In a press statement, frontman Leighton Antelman remarked, "I am overly excited to put out this new record. I have been holding onto a lot of these songs for years now and I didn't even know if I'd ever release them. I am truly blessed to be able to share my thoughts and ideas with so many people around the world."
Tracklist:
1. Hailey
2. Dragging Your Feet in the Mud
3. Eat Your Heart Out
4. Get It Right
5. Best Nights
6. I'll Bit You
7. Seasons
8. Ghosts
9. Skin + Bones
10. Birds
=============
JOHN 5 Releases Second Single From Forthcoming Solo Album
Read more at our friends at Blabbermouth
=============
CHRIS CORNELL: 'Songbook' Album Details Revealed
SOUNDGARDEN/ex-AUDIOSLAVE singer Chris Cornell will release an album of live "Songbook" tour performances on November 21 via Universal Music Enterprises. The set will feature Cornell's own songs as well as a few covers. All fans who purchase their "Songbook" tour tickets online will receive a digital copy of the album with each order.
"Songbook" track listing:
1. As Hope And Promise Fade
2. Scar On The Sky
3. Call Me A Dog
4. Ground Zero
5. Can't Change Me
6. I Am The Highway
7. Thank You (LED ZEPPELIN cover)
8. Cleaning My Gun
9. Wide Awake
10. Fell On Black Days
11. All Night Thing
12. Doesn't Remind Me
13. Like A Stone
14. Black Hole Sun
15. Imagine (JOHN LENNON cover)
16. The Keeper
Get more information at Blabbermouth
=============
love the new music from the band and love this review!
Blink-182 releases their much anticipated album
By Cassie Rossel
The boys of Blink-182 are finally giving worldwide fans what they've been begging for with the release of their sixth studio album, Neighborhoods, on Sept. 27.
A new record seemed nearly impossible since Blink-182 announced that they would be taking an "indefinite hiatus" in 2005.
After the split, each member of the band went on to do their own projects, which further led fans to believe that Blink-182 was really over.
Travis Barker and Mark Hoppus formed the band +44, while Tom DeLonge formed the band Angels and Airwaves. Barker also made a solo record along with several side projects.
The incident that brought the band together once again was Barker's near death experience three years ago. DJ Adam Goldstein and Barker were the only survivors of a flaming Learjet 60 crash site in South Carolina.
After the terrifying crash, the three longtime friends began to come into contact once again.
Read the rest at lariatnews.com
=============
someone always comes up with these lists, this one is more interesting than most, as it has lots of awful album cover art that i have not seen before (i guess i didn't miss much):
25 Worst Heavy Metal Album Covers Of All-Time
by Rob O'Connor
See the list at new.music.yahoo.com
=============
How many versions of an album do we need?
author Bernard Perusse of Postmedia News and the www.montrealgazette.com rants about the number of reissues coming our way. but, as a music fan, he seems to appreciate the efforts!
Read more at montrealgazette.com
=============
and in music history for september 29th:
In 1907, country crooner and legend Gene Autrey was born (he died in 1998).
Tommy Boyce (Boyce & Hart) was born in 1939 (died in 1994).
In 1956, Bill Haley had five songs in the U.K. Top 30: “Rockin Through the Rye,” “Saints Rock n’ Roll,” “Rock Around the Clock,” “Razzle Dazzle” and “See You Later Alligator.”
Also in 1956, RCA Victor, by this day, had received 856,327 advance orders for "Love Me Tender" by Elvis Presley.
In 1958, the Big Bopper's "Chantilly Lace" entered the US Pop chart, where it will top out at #6.
Also in 1958, Tommy Edwards' "It's All In The Game" led the Billboard chart. The melody of the song had been written in 1912 by Charles Gates Dawes, who would become vice-president of the United States between 1925 and 1929. Updated lyrics were added in 1951.
In 1959, Cliff Richard became the first UK artist to have a rock 'n' roll hit in the US when "Living Doll" makes the Billboard chart, where it will peak at #30.
In 1961, Bob Dylan played harmonica on three tracks of his friend Caroline Hester's first album. Producer John Hammond is so impressed that he signs Dylan to a contract and arranges for a solo recording session in October.
In 1962, "My Fair Lady" closed after a 6½ year run on Broadway. The show, at the time, held the record for the longest-running musical.
In 1963, the Rolling Stones opened their first English tour in London at the New Victoria. Also on the bill were Bo Diddley and the Everly Brothers.
In 1966, Jimi Hendrix and Noel Redding meet for the first time while auditioning for Eric Burdon's New Animals in London.
"I Heard it Through the Grapevine" was released by Gladys Knight & the Pips in 1967.
Mickey Hart joined the Grateful Dead in 1967.
"45rpm SongFacts"In 1973, Grand Funk Railroad went to #1 on the US singles chart with “We’re an American Band,” the group’s first of two chart toppers. The song was sung by drummer Don Brewer rather than Mark Farner, who usually took lead vocals.
Grand Funk drummer Don Brewer:
"We started out as a trio in 1969. Everybody calls it 'Heavy Metal,' but heavy metal didn't come around until the '80s, so we were just a hard rock trio. We were kind of riding along with the FM underground situation, so we were able to make 7 minute, 9 minute songs and we'd get the airplay because that was the in thing to do - we could get whole albums played. As we moved into 1972, FM underground radio was beginning to be very commercial, so they were looking for songs that were 3 minutes 30 seconds long. We needed to go that way. We left our former manager Terry Knight in 1972. We were going through lawsuits and all this crap and we came out with an album that was very different for Grand Funk Railroad called The Phoenix Album. We were lucky to have sort of a semi-hit off that record ('Rock 'N' Roll Soul'), but we knew that the next record had to be something big or the career was going to go down the toilet. We were touring, supporting The Phoenix Album, we were going from town to town, there were lawsuits flying all over the place, it was a very tumultuous time period. I remember lots of discussions in the back of cars going, 'What are we going to do next?' Our manager kept saying, 'Why don't you just write songs about what you do: you're out here on the road, you're going to this hotel, you go to different places, there's people, you come into town...' So the thought came into my mind, 'We're coming to your town, we'll help you party it down.' That's really what we were doing - we were coming into town and we were the party. That's where the line came from, and the next thought I had was, 'We're an American band.' It wasn't to wave the flag or anything, it was just simply what we were. It was a true description and it kind of rolled off my mind. I went home and worked on the concept for a while and picked up a guitar; I'm not really a great guitar player, I can play 2 finger chords and that kind of stuff. I worked out the chord structure and I brought it in to rehearsal one day and there you go - we just let it go from there. It had a mind of its own."
The lyrics are about little things that were going on on the road during the Phoenix tour. All of them are true. Don explains the line, "Up all night with Freddie King, I've got to tell you, poker's his thing":
"Freddie King was the opening act for us, the great Blues guitar player from Texas. It always struck me as funny that he would make his band play poker with him every night. We used to sit in on some of the poker games, and that's where that line came from. His band, he'd pay them, and then he'd go win all the money back so they were broke and they'd have to keep playing for him - it was a great deal. A lot of people don't understand the Freddie King part because they don't know who Freddie King is. Anybody who knows about Freddie King immediately picks it up. People who don't say, 'What are you saying, that Focus can't sing?'
The line "Sweet Sweet Connie was doing her act" is about Connie Hamzy, a famous groupie known as "Sweet Connie." Some of her rumored conquests include Brewer, John Bonham, Keith Moon, Huey Lewis, Peter Criss, and Bill Clinton when he was governor of Arkansas. This song made her famous, and in 2010 VH1 ran a special about her life. According to Hamzy, she didn't have "the whole band," as stated in the lyrics, but she came pretty close - Mark Farner was a holdout.
Grand Funk was one of the best-selling bands of the '70s, and this was their biggest hit. Critics were often very harsh, especially Rolling Stone magazine, but they had a huge fan base and got lots of radio play. Says Brewer, "The time was right, it was the summer heading for the 4th of July. We'd really come off of about a year of publicity in Rolling Stone and other music mags with publicity flying over our lawsuits with Terry Knight. There were a lot of things going on where as long as we came up with something that was very commercially viable, it was going to hit, and this came and really took it over the top. We enlisted Todd Rundgren to work on the album - we wanted that commercial appeal Todd could give us with FM radio - he really understood what the sound of the time was. When he came in, the magic was there. We recorded in Miami, one thing was leading to another and it was all snowballing and happening for us. The fact that the song was so good, and so commercially good just added to it."
In the first pressing, all the copies of the 45 RPM records were pressed on gold vinyl. Says Brewer: "That was Capitol's idea. A couple of bands had done that prior to us. It's called virgin vinyl and it's expensive, so record companies didn't want to do virgin vinyl. You could see through it. Black vinyl, they can put all kinds of impurities in there that nobody cares about. Virgin vinyl, where you can see though it, if there were impurities and stuff there would be specks all through it, so they didn't like doing that, but we went to them and said, 'Look, we want to make a special statement,' so they agreed to print 100,000 units of both the single and the album on virgin gold vinyl to go along with the gold record situation we had going - we had about 6 gold records prior to that, and it was like, 'Let's give everybody a gold record.' They were rare, and they still go for a pretty good buck with collectors." In 1974, John Lennon appeared on WNEW-FM in New York as a guest DJ.
In 1976, enjoying his own birthday celebrations, singer Jerry Lee Lewis accidentally shot his bass player Norman Owens in the chest. Lewis had been blasting holes in an office door. Owens survived but sued his boss.
In 1977, James Brown's band walked out on him Hallandale, FL. They were complaining about being underpaid and overworked.
In 1984, Prince's single "Let's Go Crazy" hit No. 1. He then held the No. 1 single, album and film simultaneously. Only the Beatles had accomplished the feat previously.
In 1989, with a full-scale Eagles reunion still five years away, Glenn Frey joined Don Henley onstage for the first time since 1980 at a concert in LA. Throughout the decade, band members received several lucrative offers to reunite, but declined them all.
In 1989, while travelling on his motorbike from Los Angeles, Bruce Springsteen stopped in a small salon in Prescott, AZ, and played a few songs with the band. He overheard a woman talking about financial problems concerning her medical bills. A week later she received a check for $100,000 from Springsteen. that's why he is the BOSS
In 1990, Rick Nelson's sons Gunnar and Matthew have a number one hit on Billboard's Hot 100 with "Love and Affection", becoming the third generation of Nelsons to accomplish that feat. Their grandfather, Ozzie Nelson, led his orchestra to the top of the chart in 1932 with "And Then Some" and Rick topped all others in 1958 with "Poor Little Fool" and in 1961 with "Travelin' Man".
In 2001, Farm Aid 2001: A Concert for America was held in Noblesville, IN with Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews, Doobie Brothers and Martina McBride.
In 2004, Keith Moon’s five-piece drum kit, custom-made for The Who drummer in 1968, sold for $215,772 in London to an American collector, setting a world auction record for a set of drums.
birthdays today (among others) include: Les Claypool (Primus) (48), Mike Pinera (Blues Image, Iron Butterfly) (63), John Payne (Asia) (53), Mark Farner (Grand Funk Railroad) (63) and the immortal Jerry Lee Lewis (76)
